UK General Election results night

22:10 — Projections based on the first exit polls published on the BBC website indicate the following results: Con — 307, Lab — 255, LibDem — 59, Others — 29. It probably will not reflect the actual results, but it will be interesting to see what the differences will be. A hung parliament looks most likely at the moment.

22:55 — The first result: Houghton & Sunderland South. It’s a Labour hold, which is not surprising given it’s a Labour stronghold, though there was a noticeable swing from Labour to the Conservatives. Will this be replicated throughout the land? Probably not, so a long night ahead.

23:30 — The second result: Washington & Sunderland West. Labour hold, though there was a huge 11.6% swing from Labour to the Tories. Another worrying sign, perhaps, is the share of the BNP vote. In these two constituencies, the BNP has beaten UKIP.

23:45 — Sunderland Central is Labour hold, but with a smaller swing to the Tories. There is yet a pattern to emerge. There have been reports of many people who were in the queue, but could not vote, because the clock struck 10 PM when the polls closed.

00:42 — A couple of results from Nothern Ireland. If the Tories were to come close to a majority, then the Loyalist parties could play a very important role, and with that, there may be effects on the peace process.

00:57 — Mr Peter Robinson has lost his seat. It is probably due to the scandals involving his wife. His Wikipedia entry has already been altered to include his defeat. Very quick.

01:01 — Plaid Cymru gains a seat from Labour. How many seats will the SNP and Plaid Cymru gain?

01:05 — Kingswood: Tory gain from Labour. There was a 9.4% swing from Labour to the Tories. If this were replicated across the marginals, then the Conservatives will attain a majority. A flurry of results, mostly the incumbent parties holding their seats. The projected results based on exit polls may be wrong by a substantial margin.

01:36 — Conservatives gain Battersea from Labour. It was expected.

01:42 — Mr Brown’s speech sounded very much like the end of an era.

02:27 — The Tories are doing pretty well in Wales. So far, the Conservatives have gained two seats from Labour, and another from the Liberal Democrats. Mr Öpik of the asteroid fame has lost his seat.

02:34 — The results still remain extremely unclear. The Liberal Democrats have not done as well as the polls had suggested. While Labour is losing, it is not losing as badly as I had anticipated. And it really is unclear how well the Tories are doing.

02:58 — I would dearly love to go to bed knowing who will be governing Britain, however, there is no clear picture yet. The Tories have won seats from Labour and from the Liberal Democrats, but with varying swings. Each constituency has its characteristics. Can the Tories reach the majority?

03:02 — Mr Cameron delivers a good and considered speech. One could say he hedged his bets and was hesitant, because the outcome of this election remains unclear. Whilst not claiming victory, but showing willingness to work and doing the best for the country. Mr Cameron needs to keep his options open.

03:07 — So far, Labour hasn’t done as badly as I thought, and the Liberal Democrats have not done as well as I thought, but I find it difficult to judge the Tories’ performance so far.

03:55 — The Tories have done well in Wales. 38 of 40 constituencies are declared, and the party has gained 4 seats and lies second in the share of the popular vote. The same cannot be said for Scotland. At the moment, the Tories are fourth behind Labour, SNP and LibDem.

04:24 — A bit surprised that Dr Evan Harris has lost his Oxford seat, even by the narrowest of margins. It’s been a bad night for the Liberal Democrats, only if their expectations were high.

05:23 — Still unclear how many seats the Tories will be winning. It looks unlikely that a coalition of Labour and the Liberal Democrats will be able to command a majority in the Commons.

05:51 — Greens win their first Westminster parliament seat. This is an interesting development.

06:00 — Still over 100 results to be declared, and there is still no result. Need to rest a bit now. I feel as though I have been cheated of a good night’s sleep.

08:50 — Well, I’ve been wrong about the projected seats calculated on exit polls (22:10). The projections were pretty accurate. A hung parliament was predictable and predicted, but the big question, who forms the next government, seems to be destined to remain unanswered for a while.

10:00 — The headline should be something on the lines of General election: no one wins. Bizarrely, every major party fell short of expectation: the Tories haven’t reached overall majority; Labour has been kicked out of the office; and the Liberal Democrats did not see the surge many predicted.